Prayers for the Faithful of Los Angeles

Update Sep. 7: Containment efforts are moving slowly at the Station fire in the Angeles National Forest, due to unfavorable weather conditions over Labor Day weekend. A scheduled controlled burn to build more fire lines on Monday was scrapped. The blaze is almost two weeks old and has scorched 157,200 acres (246 square miles) and approximately 75 homes, but it is 56% contained. Full containment is still expected on September 15. No further deaths or injuries have been reported. Not all evacuations have been lifted, though some members of St. Nicholas Cathedral in Los Angeles who live near the fire have been able to return home. Fire officials are continuing their arson investigation.

Please continue to pray to the Lord God for the souls of the firefighters who lost their lives last week, for all those who have been harmed or impacted by the Station fire and for the inferno’s speedy extinguishment. For the latest fire information, log onto the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection website.

Update Sep. 3: After days of valiant efforts by over 4,800 firefighters and other personnel, and favorable weather conditions, the Station fire in the Angeles National Forest is now 38% contained. Officials estimate full containment by Tuesday, September 15. Most members of St. Nicholas Cathedral in Los Angeles who live near where the fire is burning have been able to return home; however, not all evacuation orders have been lifted, especially near Tujunga on the fire’s western front. The Station fire has consumed 147,418 acres, or 230 square miles. Officials now say that the wildfire is arson, and the L.A. County Sheriff's Department says it has begun a homicide investigation into the deaths of the two firefighters on Sunday. Their vehicle went off a mountainside.

The Station fire is now the largest in L.A. County history. Parts of the forest have no recorded burn history. The blaze started on August 26 and has since burned down 64 homes and injured three people, in addition to the two deaths.

Please continue to pray to the Lord God for the souls of the firefighters, for all those who have been harmed or impacted by the Station fire and for the inferno’s speedy extinguishment. For the latest fire information, log onto the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection website.

UPDATE 9/1/09: The Station fire in the Angeles National Forest is still burning with no end in sight. The blaze has burned near the community of La Cañada Flintridge, where members of St. Nicholas Cathedral in Los Angeles have been forced to flee their homes. As of Monday evening, the blaze had consumed over 105,000 acres (165 square miles) of the Angeles National Forest and has destroyed 74 buildings including 53 homes. The Station fire is still threatening 12,000 homes and 2,500 other structures; it is only 5% contained. Fire officials consider the terrain and activity of the blaze to be very difficult. Some of the vegetation has not burned in nearly 40 years. Flame heights have reached 80 feet.

“The fire is headed just about anywhere it wants to,” L.A. County Fire Deputy Chief Mike Dietrich said in a news conference. “This is a very angry fire. Until we get a change in the weather conditions, I am not overly optimistic.” ...

Please continue to pray to the Lord God for the souls of the departed firefighters, for all those who have been harmed or impacted by the Station fire and for the inferno’s speedy extinguishment. For the latest fire information, log onto the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection website.

We ask you to pray for those impacted and evacuated by the Station fire burning in La Cañada Flintridge. Some members of St. Nicholas Cathedral in Los Angeles who live in La Cañada have been forced to flee.

As of Saturday evening, the blaze had consumed over 20,000 acres of the Angeles National Forest and is threatening 10,000 homes and 2,500 other structures. The Station fire is only 5% contained. Fire officials consider the terrain and activity of the blaze to be very difficult. Some of the vegetation has not burned in nearly 40 years. Flame heights have reached 80 feet.

Other fires burning in L.A. County are winding down. The Morris fire in San Gabriel Canyon near Morris Dam has charred almost 2,200 acres but is 95% contained. The PV Fire in Rancho Palos Verdes burned 235 acres but is now 100% contained. For the latest fire information, log onto the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection website.